SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Rallies at Congressional offices across Missouri and around the country took place on Tuesday. They were part of National Day of Action, a day to help save the U.S. Postal Service.
In Springfield, postal workers, their families and friends gathered outside U.S. Rep. Billy Long's office. The message was clear: the fate of the U.S. Postal Service is a major national issue affecting every American and only Congress has the power to help.
Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night, the United States Postal Service has been delivering mail since the dawn of the country and now it's under fire.
"It's just unbelievable. The stories change every day as to what is going to happen to us, what the future of the U.S. Postal Service will be," said Letter Carrier Ron Lewis. "It's frustrating for employees. I know it's frustrating for the Postal Service."
The end of Saturday delivery, the closing of thousands of post offices and hundreds of processing centers are all ideas floating around Congress to save money.
For the past four fiscal years, from 2007-2011, the Postal Service made a profit of $611 million. So, when everyone says they are in the red, what exactly are they talking about?
"Congress required us to pre-fund retiree health care benefits for 75 years in advance," said Lewis. "That's for letter carriers and postal employees that haven't even been born yet."
